West Kutai told to form team with KEM to study cholera case

The West Kutai regency administration in East Kalimantan must immediately form a special team together with gold mining firm PT Kelian Equatorial Mining (KEM) to study a deadly cholera case which have caused 154 victims including 6 death, the local Kaltim Post daily reported Wednesday.

The paper quoted head of the West Kutai environmental office A. Wahyudinata as saying that KEM must be involved in the special team to avoid public accusation that the company?s waste materials had polluted the local Nuyak river.

There has been claims that people consuming water from the Nuyak river had to suffer heavy diarrhea and vomiting, the symptom of cholera. (*)